These Baked Salmon Filo Parcels are an easy way to prepare fish quickly and in a non-smelly way. Dressed with an old-fashioned Farmstyle Pickle relish and served with a veggie-ful cauliflower mash, they disappeared quicker than I could say let’s eat.

One of the major reasons many people abstain from eating seafood, or fish in particular, is the omnipresent smell that fills the air for hours after the meal has been cooked and devoured. My dear husband Matt, is one of those people. While he likes to tuck into a piece of nicely cooked fish while we are out, he sometimes has reservations about doing the same at home.

The idea of baking the salmon in filo parcels dawned on me the other day. It’s brilliant really because it keeps the flavours (and scent) inside the thin, flaky, undulating crust that’s a world lighter than puff, my ususal pie pastry of choice. Though, this is no pie. It’s a simple parcel of salmon, a dollop of Anathoth’s all natural Farmstyle Pickle relish – which is an instant sensation in classics like chicken pies, wrapped in three sheets of pastry. Nothing more, nothing less, but trust me, the flavours are there!

As for the mash, well the kids polished off a larger than usual serve of “the pea potato”, promptly asking for seconds. It seems they loved cauliflower mash as much as they loved cauliflower pizza I served during a client shoot once, without the slightest hint of mealtime trickery detected.

Postcards from around Anathoth Farm New Zealand

Speaking of Anathoth (pron: Anatot)… Late last year I had the pleasure of finally making my way over the Tasman to visit the small town of Geraldine in South Canterbury on New Zealand’s South Island, home to Anathoth Farm and Barker’s of Geraldine. Some of you may know that my love of the brand began long before I this blog was born; their boysenberry jam reminding me of my Mum’s traditional-recipe jams. Over the past couple of years I have also been developing recipes for Anathoth’s jams, relishes, pickles and fruit mince, as well as a number of other products currently only available in New Zealand (love that juicy Green Tomato Pickle and spicy Sweet Chilli Relish).

Like anything in New Zealand, the family run and operated farm and fruit and veg processing plant are surrounded by natural beauty. Michael Barker, his team and family are all so passionate about the quality of their product and about keeping true to tradition in recipe development, while innovating in areas of production and sustainability. It is fantastic to see, and considering how much effort and heart goes into each pottle of jam or relish, I am surprised that they are so affordable too. Barker’s of Geraldine squeezed fruit syrups are now also available in Australia.

Aside from visiting Anathoth Farm and Barker’s of Geraldine, we were treated to a string of exciting foodie experiences. We had a chance to meet and chat to local farmers who grow the produce that goes into each Anathoth pottle. We visited a local salmon farm and picnicked on the shores of Lake Ohau with catering (including all of the cute props) by Lake Ohau Lodge. We were cooked for by a local Vicar, shot clay pigeons, enjoyed rescued battery hen eggs and I had the wonderful pleasure of cooking lunch for Michael and everyone else in attendance at a beautiful local homestead.

Place 6 filo pastry sheets in a single layer on a kitchen bench and cut in half across - you should now have two piles of 6 sheets. Divide each pile into two piles of 3 sheets. You should now have 4 piles of 3 sheets each.

Cut salmon fillets across in half and place each salmon fillet in the middle of each pastry sheet pile. Top with a quarter of the relish then wrap snugly, folding in sides. Cut off any excess pastry.

Place on a baking paper-lined baking sheet. Bake for 15 minutes or until edges are starting to turn golden.

In the meantime, cut cauliflower into small florets. place in a medium pan and cover with water. Add peas and salt. Cook for 10 minutes. Drain, add baby spinach and butter and blend using a stick blender.

To serve:

Divide mash and salmon parcels between 4 plates. Add a side of steamed broccolini and serve with a lemon wedge.

Such a genius and lovely idea to bake salmon in delicious, edible phyllo dough instead of parchment paper! That looks very appealing served over the cauliflower mash as well. I love it, and I’ll definitely plan to try this. 🙂

hi, went to make this tonight and didn’t realise I had to leave the filo out for 2 hours prior before making…
I am sorry if I am a bit thick I found the directions a bit confusing, there are 6 sheets of pastry I lay them out cut them in half so now I have 12 pieces, then you say to place the salmon fillet in the middle of EACH layer !! I don’t get it. I am assuming since it serves four that I am to make four separate parcels so that would be 3 halved sheets layered on top of ea other then place a fillet on ea and fold up ….so each parcel is made up of three sheets of filo? .no butter needed either between sheets I gather?
Thanks jane

Hi Jane, I used fresh filo (you can generally find it in the fridge section of most supermarkets and many grocers) so it doesn’t need defrosting, Regarding the method, you were right – I’ve now updated the recipe to be clearer in terms of instructions. You could use butter if you liked, but it’s not necessary if you want the meal to be lighter.

Hello Martyna, I’m sorry it has been some time since I stopped by but I found that your new post e-mails have been going to my spam inbox. Bummer! So happy I looked and I found this lovely recipe for salmon parcels. This is perfect for anti-fish teenagers. I can’t wait to give this fish recipe a try. Love the pea mash too.

Hi Jill, any relish would work. Anathoth have recently launched their Sweet Chilli Relish into Australia as well, but if you can’t find that brand anything with a hint of spice or curry would be perfect.